182 flood insurance claims·$2.2M paid·3 federal flood & hurricane disasters
Share of the whole county outline, rivers and lakes included; parts FEMA hasn’t mapped count as zero.
Shaded areas are FEMA’s mapped flood hazard zones in and around Muskingum County, Ohio. Zoomed out they are simplified; at street level the map switches to FEMA’s exact layer. Tap anywhere to check that spot, or search an address above.
Flash flooding from severe weather dominates the flood risk profile in Muskingum County, which recorded 54 flash flood events compared to 28 general flood events over the last 30 years. Slow-moving thunderstorms capable of producing heavy rainfall totals between 2 and 3.5 inches drive this hazard, as demonstrated by events in May 2025 that caused flash flooding in western areas of the county.
Federal insurance claims data shows that properties located within high-risk Special Flood Hazard Areas, designated as Zone A, experience the highest financial impact with 94 claims averaging a payout of $23,284 and an average recorded water depth of 10 inches. Properties in moderate-to-low risk Zone X areas also face vulnerability, accounting for 45 claims with an average payout of $13,892 and an average recorded water depth of 9 inches. An additional 43 claims were filed under an unknown zone designation, averaging $2,316 with an average recorded water depth of 1 inch.
Homeowners and real estate agents managing properties in Zone A and Zone X, as well as journalists reporting on local severe weather impacts, should pay the closest attention to these flood risks given the historical frequency of flash flooding and the significant average claim payouts associated with both designated flood zones.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
Less than 1% of Muskingum County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
94 NFIP claims with a recorded rated flood zone, 1978 to date. The zone is the one FEMA used to rate that policy, which may not match today’s map. Source: OpenFEMA NFIP claims.
In flood insurance claims here that reported a flood depth, the average was 7 inches.
Drawn to scale against an 80-inch door. Even a few inches soaks flooring, the bottom of the drywall and anything plugged in near the floor.
Average of the depths reported on claims (zero and implausible values left out); FEMA’s record doesn’t say exactly where each depth was measured. Source: OpenFEMA NFIP claims.
The worst year was 2005, with 31 claims and $677,960 paid, the year of Hurricane Katrina Evacuation.
Bar height is scaled by square root so ordinary years stay visible next to the worst one. NFIP claims by year of loss. Source: OpenFEMA.
16 NOAA storm reports from Muskingum County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Ohio flood stories →
17 federal disaster declarations since 1969, 3 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Tornadoes, Flooding, Landslides, And Mudslide | May 27, 2019 |
| Severe Storms, Flooding, And Landslides | Feb 5, 2019 |
| Severe Storms, Landslides, And Mudslides | Feb 14, 2018 |
| Severe Storms | Jun 29, 2012 |
| Severe Storms And Straight-line Winds | Jun 29, 2012 |
| Hurricane Katrina Evacuation | Aug 29, 2005 |
| Severe Winter Storms, Flooding, And Mudslides | Dec 22, 2004 |
| Severe Storms And Flooding | Aug 27, 2004 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
82 since 1996: 54 flash floods and 28 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | May 13, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jun 5, 2025 | $5,000 |
| Flash Flood | Apr 2, 2024 | — |
| Flood | Apr 2, 2024 | — |
| Flash Flood | Aug 21, 2022 | — |
| Flood | Feb 17, 2022 | $5,000 |
| Flood | Feb 4, 2022 | $100,000 |
| Flash Flood | Aug 31, 2021 | $25,000 |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · May 13, 2025. A slow-moving thunderstorm during the evening of May 13th produced between 2 and 3.5 inches of rain in western Muskingum County, resulting in flash flooding.
Flash Flood · Jun 5, 2025. Slow moving thunderstorms developing along a slow moving cold front produced flash flooding in Muskingum and Carroll counties in Ohio on the 5th.
Flash Flood · Apr 2, 2024. Several rounds of showers and thunderstorms prompted a widespread flash flood problems across the Ohio River Valley on April 2nd to April 3rd. The synoptic pattern across the CONUS was a slow moving and deep elongated trough over the Great Plains phasing with a ejecting trough over the Midwest that created an area of converging moisture over eastern Ohio and western Pennsylvania. Overall, over a span of 4 days, fo…
Flood · Apr 2, 2024. Several rounds of showers and thunderstorms prompted a widespread flash flood problems across the Ohio River Valley on April 2nd to April 3rd. The synoptic pattern across the CONUS was a slow moving and deep elongated trough over the Great Plains phasing with a ejecting trough over the Midwest that created an area of converging moisture over eastern Ohio and western Pennsylvania. Overall, over a span of 4 days, fo…
National Weather Service narratives, lightly trimmed. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Every colour on the map above is a place on this drawing: where the ground sits relative to the flood FEMA plans for.
If a building in Muskingum County is in a high-risk zone (A or V) and its mortgage comes from a federally regulated or insured lender, or is federally backed, flood insurance is required.
Outside those zones it is optional, and often worth having: from 2014 to 2024 nearly one-third of NFIP claims came from outside the high-risk Special Flood Hazard Area. Since Risk Rating 2.0, NFIP premiums are set for each building, so the only reliable price is a quote: FloodSmart.gov or a local agent.